Mercury dispenser



July 5, 1932. E, CHO-r1' MERCURY DISPENSER Filed Nov. 15. 1929 I "u mm carefully mixed in a mortar.

Patented July 5, 1932 www su..

vEDSTARID L. CHOTT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS MERCURY DISPENSER Application filed NovemberlS, 1929. Serial No. 406,752."

This invention relates to measuring and dispensing devices, and more particularly to a mercury dispenser for use in connection with dentistry.

Dental amalgams asusually prepared coinprise a triturated mixture of a characteristic metal alloy. and mercury. To secure the proper resultant product it is essential that the ingredients be correctly proportioned and Owing to the peculiar characteristics of mercury, such as used in dental amalgame, it is difficult to measure with any degree of exactness the prescribed quantity by volume and weight which is necessary for the correct ratio in the mixture, which is an important factor in the results obtained in amalgam fillings. The present invention has for its principal object toproduce a simple device for measuring predetermined and definite quantities of.

flowable liquid substances, and more particularly mercury, for the purposes hereinbefore set forth. Another object of the invention is to provide a compact and handy device comprising a receptacle having a measuring valve for dispensing a predetermined quantity of the contents Vof the container. Other objects and advantages to be attained will hereinafter more fully appear.

The invention consists in the novel construction of the deviceV and in the parts and combinations and arrangements of partsl thereof as hereinafter described and pointed out with particularity in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing, forming a Fig. 3 is an elevation, on an enlarged scale, of the valve end portion of the device;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary section, taken on or`aboutthe line 4 4 of Fig. 3; l d 4 Fig is a section on the line 5 5 of Fig.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6 6 of Fig. 4'.

v Referring now to thedrawing, the numeral 10 designates the body portion of the device FATENT @FF-icuii which, as shown, is cylindrical and provided 55 with a chamber 11, said chamber being adapted to contain a liquid to be dispensed in measured quantitiestherefrom. The body of mercury or other liquid in the container 11, Vdesignated by the numeral 12, and illustrated in Figs. 2, 4 and 6 of thedrawng, is placed inthe chamber 11 through an opening at the end thereof, which is provided with a closure 13 in the formV of ascrew-threaded plug-like cap, said closure, as shown more clearly in Fig. 1, being provided with a knurled collar 14, and a gasket 15 being provided between said collar and the adjacent end of the cliainbered body portion 10 so as to'iiiake a leak-tight joint, as shown more clearly in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing.

At the opposite end of the chambered body portion 10 is a longitudinal extension or lug 16 which is providedwith -a transverse bore therethrough, a portion 17 of said bore being of a diameter to receiveloosely therein thev stem portion 18 of a valve element, which latter is provided, with a conical head 19 fitted rotatably in af correspondingly flaredl enlargement 2O of said bore. The conical portion 19 of the valve element is fitted with eXact nicety to the counterpart socket afforded by the iared enlargement 20 of the bore in said extension 16. In other words, said portion 19 is ground to its seat according to any approved method of fitting valves to their respective seats;n The stein portion 18 of the valve element is screwfthreaded at its outer end, as at 21and secured in a' counterpart screw-threaded axial socket 22 provided v therefor at the bottom of a bore 28 formed in an externally lniurled handle member 24. Coiled loosely about said stem portion 18 is a spring 25 which is interposed under coml seating faces of the valve portion 19 and socket 20.

The conical portion 19 of the valve element normally closes a longitudinal port or restricted passageway 28 which opens at its outer end into the flared portion 2O of the bore in the extension 16 and communicates at its inner end vwith a pocket 29, which latter slocated to one side of the longitudinal axis of the body portion 10 and communicates with the chamber 11 therein. In longitudinal alinement with the port or restricted passageway 28 is a slotted opening 8O in the extension 16 which communicates with the Haired socket portion 2O ofthe bore in which the conical portion 19 of the valve element is rotatably litted, at a point diametrically oppositev said port or passageway 28, said conical portion 19 of the valve element being provided with a plurality of 'recesses 81 which are respectively adapted to be brought successively into registering communication with the port or passageway 28 and said slotted opening 80 in succession when the valve elementv is rotated, and thereby deliver a-me'asured quantity of the mercury or other liquid contained in the chamber 11. In order to provide for the rotation of the valve element and. to limit its rotation to one direction, theinner end portion of the handle member 24 is provided with a seriesof circumferential recesses having flattened tangential faces 82 and radial shoulder portions 88, said flattened faces beingarranged to receive the flattened end portion..84 of aA spring-pressed bolt 85 whereby the handle member 24 is yieldably held against accidental rotation, and the ad] acent shoulder portion 88 engaging the bolt 85 so as to prevent rotation of the handle ineinberin one direction but permitting rotation thereof inthe opposite direction when sutlicient force is supplied to turn the handle member 24 and overcome the tension of a spring 86 which normally holds said bolt .85 yieldably in engagement with said handle member.

Preferably, as shown more clearly in Fig. ,4.0i thedrawing, the bolt 8'5 is provided with a; longitudinal borefor the accommodation ot thespring 86 so as to minimize thedepth of tlieborein which said bolt is slidably itted in the end portion of the body member 10 and to permit the utilization of a spring of considerable length. As shown, there are tour of the recesses 81 in the conical portion 19 of the valve element, and said recesses are disposed in diametrically opposed relation, and the circumferentially recessed portions of the handle member 24 which are engaged by the spring-pressed bolt 85 are correspondingly arranged, there being one of said bolt engaging portions correlated to each of the recesses 81 and being so arranged with respect to the bolt 85 that in the cooperative engaging relation of the bolt and circumferential seat portions of the handle element 24, there is always one of the recesses 81 in register with the port or passageway 28 and the diametrically opposite recess 81 is in coniinunication with the slotted opening 80, from which opening 8O a measured quantity of the mercury or other liquid is discharged from the registering pocket 81. Obviously, the screw-threaded engagement between the stem 18 of the valve element and the axial recess 22 in the handle member 24 is such that the attachment tends to become tighter rather than loosened'when the handle member is rotated in the proper direction to deliver the measured quantities of the contents from the container 10. However, should it become desirable to remove the valve element from the bore in the extension 16, it is only necessary to hold the handle member from rotating in its normal direction of rotation and unscrew the stem portion 18 of the valve element from the axial socket 22 of the handle member by turning said valve element in the direction of normal rotation of the handle member. For convenience in accomplishing this, the valve element may be provided with an end' extension 88 having a transverse slot 89 ior the reception of a screw driver blade or a special key device.

Obviously, the device may be made in various sizes according to the use for which it is intended. When the device is to be used particularly for measuring and dispensing mercury, as hereinbeiore described, the container will be made to have a capacity of about a quarter-pound of mercury in the chamber 11, and the measuring and dispensing recesses 81 in the conical portion 19 of the valve element will be of the capacity of two, three, or ive grain globules of mercury, which are the respective quantities that are used for the ordinary batches of amalgainj'to be prepared.

In use, the device may be conveniently held in one hand substantially at the angle illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawing, and with the other hand the handle element or knob 24 may be conveniently grasped whereby to rotate the valve element and deliver the inercury drop by drop through the slotted outL let opening .80 at the lower corner Aof the eX- tension 16. So, too, in some cases,'the knob Sasser "24e may be manipulated with the thumb and fore finger of the same hand in which the device is held. In this connection, it may be here particularly noted that the peculiar ratchet arrangement between the knob 24 and valve element 19 is of considerable importance and materially advantageous in the operation of the device. That is to say, the resultant click as the spring-pressed bolt 35 snaps off the abrupt shouldered portion 33 onto the flattened face portion 32 of the handle element or knob 24, gives an audible indication to the operator that the valve element 19 has been rotated to the proper position to bring the recesses 31 into registration respectively with the port 28 and outlet 30. The action of the ratchet is of even greater advantage in that the spring-pressed bolt moves suddenly od the abrupt shouldered portion 33 with snapping effect and strilres an appreciable blow upon the face portion 32, the shock of which insures the ejection of the globule of mercury through the opening 30 from the registered pocket 31 of the valve element 19. Y

Obviously, the device may be modified considerably in the various details and structural arrangements thereof without in the least departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. The invention, therefore, is not limited to the specific construction and arrangement shown in the accompanying drawing.

I-Iaving thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A dispensing device of the character described, comprising a cylindrical body member having a longitudinal liquid containing chamber therein, said body member having a longitudinal end extension provided with a restricted longitudinal passageway at one side of the axis of said body member, communicating at its inner end with the liquid containing chamber in said body member and at its outer end with a discharge outlet at the corner of said end extension of the body member, a transverse bore in said end eXtension of the body member intercepting communicably said longitudinal passageway and outlet opening, a valve member rotatable in said transverse bore and having circumferential recesses adapted to intermittently register with said restricted longitudinal passageway and said outlet opening whereby to deliver measured quantities of the contents from the liquid containing chamber in said body member, a laterally projecting handle member for rotating said valve element, and ratchet means for restricting rotation of said handle member to one direction only, said racket means including a spring-pressed stud cooperating with a shouldered flattened face on said handle member whereby to snap into yieldable retentive engagement therewith and by such action 4to impart vibratory' shockl to the fd'evice. y

' 2.l A dispensing device ofthe character described, comprising acylindrical body member having a longitudinal bore therein'conl: stituting a liquid containing chamber,"s aid body member having a longitudinal endeX- tension provided witha restricted,longitudi-` corner thereof in correlation to saidrestricted passageway, said body `extension having a transverse bore with an outwardly flared enlargementat its end between saidrestricted passageway and outlet opening, a valve element rotatable in said transverse boreand having a counterpart tapered portion fitted rotatably in the flared enlargement of said bore and an axial stem extending from the smaller end of said taperedV portion, said tapered portion of the valve element having an annular series of circumferential recesses for communication intermittently with said restricted passageway and with said outlet opening in succession, a handle member detachably secured to the end portion of the stem of said valve element, said handle member having an axial bore of larger diameter in which said valve stem is received, a spring sleeved about said stem and acting against the bottom of the bore and the body eXtension whereby said valve element is held with its tapered portion seated rotatably in the flared enlargement of said transverse bore, and ratchet means restricting rotation of said handle member to one direction only whereby said valve element is correspondingly rotated.

' 3. In a device of the character described, as set forth in claim 2, the said ratchet means thereof including an element rotatable with the valve element and having a series of stop faces, each lof which has a correlated abrupt shoulder, and a spring-pressed element cooperating with said rotatable ratchet element whereby to intermittently ride from the shouldered portions and thereby impact upon the respective stop faces of said rotatable element.

4. A dispensing device of the character described, comprising a longitudinally chambered body port-ion having a restricted outlet opening at the lower corner of one end thereof, and an outwardly contracted passageway` for communication .between the chamber thereof and said outlet opening, a rotatable valve element interposed between said outlet opening and said passageway, said valve element operating about an axis transversely of the adjacent end portion of the body of the device and having a circumferentially recessed portion adapted to in- 

